Ornithodoros viguerasi, a New Species of Tick from Bats in Cuba (Acarina: Ixodoidea)

Morphological study of Ornithodoros viguerasi cooley and kohls, 1941 (Acari: Ixodida: Argasidae), with sequence information from the mitochondrial 16S rDNA gene

“…Sixteen females collected in Calcehtok cavern were identified as O. viguerasi according to the description of Cooley and Kohls (1941) and after the comparison with the holotype deposited in USNTC. The specimens were determined by the following unique combination of morphological characters (Figures 1a,1b,1c,1d,1e): presence on the venter of a transverse band posteriorly to the level of coxa IV; dorsum covered by numerous mammillae irregular in size and shape; postero-lateral margins with mammillae elevated, columnar in shape, about twice as high as their diameter, with a single hair; hood present but not well-developed; basis capituli rectangular in shape; hypostome roughly blunt with small denticles present only at the apex; article I of the palpi longer than article II, with a medial integumental extension covering the basal portion of the hypostome and the presence of a long setae on the medial margin; sclerotized plates bordering coxae II, III and IV; a pair of sclerotized plates well developed, positioned anteriorly to the genital aperture, between coxae I.…”

“…The argasid tick Ornithodoros viguerasi Cooley and Kohls, 1941 was described from specimens collected from a bat cave in Cuba. This species belongs to the subgenus Subparmatus with Ornithodoros marinkellei Kohls, Clifford and Jones, 1969 and Ornithodoros mormoops Jones, 1969 (Kohls et al 1969).…”

“…The description of Cooley and Kohls (1941) was based on a female, nymphs and larvae collected in "Cueva Somorrostro", Cuba. Larvae were found attached to bats, probably P. poeyi.…”

“…Larvae were found attached to bats, probably P. poeyi. Although Guglielmone et al (2003) stated that all stages of O. viguerasi were described, the description of adults by Cooley and Kohls (1941) was based on only the female, without inclusion of male specimens. Danielová et al (1982) reported the finding of males and females of O. viguerasi on the walls of bat caves in Cuba, but the methodology for tick determination was not explained by these authors and the collection where the ticks were deposited was not indicated.…”

“…The aim of this work was to carry out the description of males of O. viguerasi from specimens recently collected from a bat cave in Mexico, and to compare the morphology of both males and females from Mexico with the morphology of the specimens of O. viguerasi described by Cooley and Kohls (1941) and also with those deposited in the United States National Tick Collection (USNTC, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, Georgia, USA). In addition, information obtained from sequences of the mitochondrial 16S rDNA gene was used to infer the phylogenetic position of this tick in relation to other Neotropical tick species of the family Argasidae, and to confirm that the different stages analyzed in this work belong to the same taxon.…”